Founded in 1915, Kiwanis International is a global organization of members dedicated to serving the children of the world.

Kiwanis and its family of clubs, including:

Circle K International for university students

Key Club for students age 14-18

Builders Club for students age 11-14

Kiwanis Kids for students age 6-12

Aktion Club for adults living with disabilities

Service is at the heart of every Kiwanis club, no matter where in the world it’s located. Kiwanis members stage nearly 150,000 service projects, devote more than 6 million hours of service and raise nearly US$100 million every year for communities, families and projects. Key Club members pitch in 12 million hours of service each year, and CKI members another 500,000 hours of service! Aktion Club members donate another 92,000 hours of service every year. Add it all up, and that’s more than 18 million hours of service every year!

The Kiwanis International family comprises nearly 600,000 adult and youth members in 80 countries and geographic areas.

Members of every age attend regular meetings, experience fellowship, raise funds for various causes and participate in service projects that help their communities. Members also make an impact throughout the world by participating in Kiwanis International’s Global Campaign for Children, The Eliminate Project: Kiwanis eliminating maternal and neonatal tetanus.

Our Brockport Kiwanis Club started a Circle K Club at The College at Brockport. They currently have 30 members that volunteer throughout our community. The Club is now functioning under its own constitution with The College at Brockport.

The Kiwanis Club of Brockport sponsors the Key Club at Brockport High School. This club has more than 175 members, all of which volunteer at least 10 hours per year. Key Club members often help our club with projects.

The Aktion Club at LifeTime Assistance is sponsored by our Brockport Club. This great club of 17 members creates and executes their own service projects, fundraisers, and help us out whenever they can. We hope they join us again this December for the Holiday Light Parade in downtown Brockport.

The Objects of Kiwanis

The six permanent Objects of Kiwanis International were approved by Kiwanis club delegates at the 1924 Convention in Denver, Colorado. Through the succeeding decades, they have remained unchanged.

Object 1 - To give primacy to the human and spiritual rather than to the material values of life.

Object 2 - To encourage the daily living of the Golden Rule in all human relationships.

Object 3 - To promote the adoption and the application of higher social, business, and professional standards.

Object 4 - To develop, by precept and example, a more intelligent, aggressive, and serviceable citizenship.

Object 5 - To provide, through Kiwanis clubs, a practical means to form enduring friendships, to render altruistic service, and to build better communities.

Object 6 - To cooperate in creating and maintaining that sound public opinion and high idealism which make possible the increase of righteousness, justice, patriotism, and goodwill.

Kiwanis history

The first clubs were organized to promote the exchange of business among the members. However, the members were distributing Christmas baskets to the poor. A lively debate ensued between those who supported community service as the Kiwanis mission and those who supported the exchange of business. By 1919, the service advocates won the debate.

Kiwanis was founded in Detroit, Michigan, on January 21, 1915.

In the early years, Kiwanis clubs focused on business networking, but even then, members were serving the needs of the poor.

By 1919, the organization had changed its focus from business to service.

Kiwanis became an international organization in 1916 with the organization of the Kiwanis Club of Hamilton, Ontario.

Kiwanis limited its membership to the United States and Canada until 1962 when worldwide expansion was approved.

Until 1987, Kiwanis was a male-only organization. But after years of debate and growing support, women’s membership was received overwhelmingly.